The Astrology of War and Peace: Planetary Patterns Before Historic Conflicts
We often view war as a failure of politics, a sudden eruption of chaos in an otherwise orderly world. But at the Wilfred Hazelwood Clinic, we see it differently. Just as the tides obey the moon, human aggression seems to obey a cosmic clock. As a therapist trained in Jungian analysis and an astrologer with a background in Social Anthropology, I have spent years studying the "astrological weather" that precedes global conflict.
The evidence is compelling: history does not repeat itself, but the planetary cycles do. When the "Great Malefics", Saturn and Pluto, dance together in the sky, the shadow of the collective unconscious is often projected onto the battlefield.
The Saturn-Pluto Cycle: The Drums of War
The most reliable indicator of geopolitical tension is the cycle between Saturn (structure, the state, fear) and Pluto (power, transformation, death). These two planets meet in conjunction roughly every 33–38 years. In astrological terms, this is the "hard reset" of the global power structure.
- 1914 (World War I): The Great War began under a potent Saturn-Pluto conjunction in the sign of Cancer. Cancer rules the homeland, borders, and nationalism. The conjunction triggered a terrifying contraction of these themes, leading to a war of trenches (Saturn/Earth) and mass destruction (Pluto).
- 1939 (World War II): The drums beat again as Saturn in Taurus formed a tense square (90-degree angle) to Pluto in Leo. The fixed signs (Taurus/Leo) suggest stubbornness and a clash of egos. This was a war of resources (Taurus) against autocratic power (Leo).
- 1947 (Cold War): The next conjunction occurred in Leo, marking the "Iron Curtain" and the partition of India and Pakistan, a restructuring (Saturn) of power (Pluto) that defined the next half-century.
Most recently, we experienced a Saturn-Pluto conjunction in Capricorn in January 2020. While it did not trigger a traditional world war, it brought a global lockdown (Saturnian restriction) and a transformation of the economy (Pluto). We are still living in the aftershocks of this massive alignment.
The Barbault Cyclic Index: Measuring Global Optimism
French astrologer André Barbault developed the "Cyclic Index," a graph that plots the changing distances between the five outer planets (Jupiter to Pluto). When the planets are clustered together (conjunctions), the index drops, correlating with periods of global contraction, pessimism, and war. When the planets are spread out (oppositions and trines), the index rises, correlating with optimism, expansion, and peace.
Barbault famously predicted the collapse of the Soviet Union by tracking the Saturn-Neptune cycle. His index shows us that "peace" is not just the absence of war; it is an astrological season of expansion, usually driven by Jupiter (growth) making harmonious aspects to Uranus (freedom) or Neptune (ideals).
Mars: The Cosmic Trigger
While Saturn and Pluto set the stage, it is usually Mars, the God of War, who pulls the trigger. The outer planets create the tension (the loaded gun), but Mars acts as the minute hand on the clock.
For example, in 1914, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand occurred as Mars activated the volatile Uranus-Pluto alignment of the time. Mars moves quickly, translating the heavy, slow energy of the outer planets into sudden, violent action. At the clinic, we often see this on a personal level: a client may be under a long, stressful Saturn transit, but it is a sudden Mars transit that finally makes them snap.
The Peace of the Stars?
Is peace also written in the stars? Yes, but it is often harder to hold. The alignments of Jupiter and Venus, or the soft trines between the outer planets, offer windows of opportunity for diplomacy and cultural flowering. The 1990s, for instance, saw a rare "Great Conjunction" of Uranus and Neptune, which coincided with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the birth of the Internet, a time of dissolving boundaries.
We are currently in a volatile period. With Pluto in Aquarius (2024–2044), we are facing a revolution in technology and society that mirrors the French Revolution. The risk of conflict is high, but so is the potential for a breakthrough. As Jung said, "Fate is the unconscious calling." By understanding these cycles, we can choose to integrate the energy consciously, fighting for justice and reform, rather than unconsciously projecting it as war.
